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Steep Cold Spring Hike
updated: Jan 24, 2012, 4:19 PM
By Robert Bernstein
Here are my photos!
Sunday was a beautiful day for hiking, nestled in between two storms! The rain
actually settled the loose dust and soil, making the trail more firm and grippy
and less slippery.
And what a great group of fifteen avid hikers! Once again, my friend Danielle
brought her kids 8 and 11 years old and they had a delightful time leading the
way for the rest of us!
This trail climbs 1200 feet in less than a mile, making it quite steep and
challenging. But people really enjoyed the challenge and the periodic rests for
spectacular views. It took us two hours to go up the entire route from the Cold
Spring trail head to the eucalyptus trees (1800 feet gain total). But just one
hour and fifteen minutes going back down the regular trail!
There was some talk on the hike that this trail might be closed as part of an
effort to shut down a proliferation of new trails in the area. A group called
the Trails Council is behind this effort. Some on the hike were not happy to
hear that.
There has been a proliferation of trivial variations/shortcuts of existing
trails that increases erosion and unnecessarily destroys vegetation. But this is
a genuinely new route that is not redundant to other routes. In our front
country, most ridges and canyons have a trail. This trail is consistent with
that pattern, being on its own separate ridge.
The Trails Council claimed that steep trails like this result in rescue efforts
as people get tired and call for rescue. My solution: Ban cell phones on the
trails! People in recent years have decided to leave their common sense (along
with adequate food, water and clothing) at home and bring a cell phone instead.
In any case, the group on our hike Sunday was very happy with the challenge and
to be able to take a more rugged route away from the madding crowd!
Comments in order of when they were received | (reverse order)
OLDLAWOMAN
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2012-01-25 09:00 AM |
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Looks to me like a lovely fun-loving bunch on a beautiful day!
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